1. Field of the Invention
The invention herein relates to a filtering, water eliminating, and lubricating compressed air valve structure comprised of a compressed air valve installed between a conventional air compressor and a pneumatic tool. The present invention is capable of trapping free-floating particulate matter present in air and filtering our the water content to both clean and dry the air supplied into the said compressed air valve from the air compressor and then producing a mixture of the resulting air and lubricating oil to lubricate the components of a pneumatic tool and thereby enhance its mechanical operation. Furthermore, the compressed air valve is of the invention herein is also of reduced physical dimensions to facilitate installation and utilization.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional compressed air valves installed between an air compressor and a pneumatic tool are typically comprised of two separate valve components, of which the structure of the water expelling valve component A, as indicated in FIG. 1-A and FIG. 1-B, is comprised of a lengthy cylindrically shaped condensate chamber A2 having an inserted air inlet fitting A1, enabling the tubular top of the air inlet fitting A1 to be ensleeved into the hollow T-shaped leakproof washer mount A3, wherein numerous minute holes are formed in the filter ring A4 around the hollow tubular extent of the leakproof washer mount A3; then, a cross-shaped connector A5 is installed to the opening of the condensate chamber A2 that seals the interior of the chamber and, furthermore, the throats A51 and A52 inside the connector A5 are of two different diameters, with the smaller throat A52 at the bottom having a vertical through-hole A521 in its side that is in continuity with the larger throat A51 situated above; a horizontal through-hole A522 is also drilled in the inner side of the smaller throat A52 and does not interface with vertical through hole A521 that extends into sealed region of the chamber A2. Threads are tapped along the inner walls of the larger throat A51 of the connector A5. When external air is compressed by the air compressor and delivered to the water expelling valve A, the compressed air enters the air inlet fitting A1, travels through the horizontal through-holes A522 along the inner sides of the smaller throat A52, and reaches the space of the surrounding condensate chamber A2. The compressed air in chamber A2 enables the action of the numerous minute pin holes of the filter ring A4 to collect any moisture contained and only allow a continuous flow of dry air through the through-holes A521 into the larger throat A51 at the top; as such, the said structure provides for the filtration of water content from the air delivered by the air compressor to supply dry air to and thereby maintain the normal operation and mechanical efficiency of the internal components comprising the pneumatic tool by preventing moisture-induced corrosion that results in abnormal operation or tool by preventing moisture-induced corrosion that results in abnormal operation or a deterioration of original mechanical precision.
The oil supply valve component B, as indicated in FIG. 2-A and FIG. 2-B, is comprised of a tubular connector B1 inserted into an oil reservoir B2 that is then capped by an internally threaded connector B3, of which a through-hole B31 is formed in the internally threaded connector B3, enabling continuity with the hollow passage B11 in the tubular connector B1, which is connected to a pneumatic tool; an oil injection screw B21 is installed in the bottom end of the condensate chamber B2, thereby providing for pressure relief and oil volume replenishment; when a flow of air is delivered to the hollow passage B11 in the tubular connector B1 of the oil supply valve component B, the oil volume is affected by the air flow moving past the through-hole B31 formed in the internally threaded connector B3, which results in the mixing of the lubricating oil in the air flow, followed by delivery of the mixture to the internal components of the pneumatic tool, enabling the internal components of the pneumatic tool to be adequately lubricated and utilized by the operator.
However, the said water expelling valve component A and oil supply valve component B are only capable of single practical function and, furthermore, when the air delivered by the air compressor contains free-floating particulates, the air inlet fitting A1 and the hollow passage B1, are easily clogged, which adversely affects normal operation and, therefore, must be frequently cleaned and inspected; additionally, inconvenient and troublesome utilization results because the through-hole B31 of the said oil supply valve component B cannot be adjusted to vary the oil volume.
In view of the said shortcomings, the inventor of the invention herein developed the filtering, water eliminating, and lubricating compressed air valve structure of the present invention and subsequently submitted the application for patent rights.